Embroidery - a new beginning

What I worked on Friday:

 A pretty t-shirt for Mom

 Quilted a table topper - using an embroidery machine.

And I stitched out this design that took 84 minutes of sewing time....that doesn't include time spent changing the thread - 26 thread changes! Yeah, I should have added an extra layer of stabilizer under it too.  Live and learn. 

Part one - Done

I always consider making the quilt top to be Part One.  There is still the layering, quilting and binding to be done.
So Part One  of the Eye-llusion quilt is done.

I had to piece the border, so I decided to add some little pops of color in the border. The green border fabric is not the same as the green pieces, but it matches so closely that it isn't obvious.  The plan was to add another border of the purple fabric, but once this border was on the size was perfect.   So I will piece the back and use the purple strips I had already cut for border in the backing.
I just love this quilt top.
For those of you who are trying to learn about putting colors together let me try to explain this one.  Purple is made by mixing blue and red.  Green is made by mixing blue and yellow.  Thus blue is the common link in the green and purple.
Someone said "I would never think to put purple and green together!"  I said "Take a look at nature! An iris is purple on a green stem and it is lovely."

Yes, if it goes together in nature it is a sure bet it will work in quilting or painting!

Book Review - Sonoma Rose

First let me say that reading is a true passion with me.   As a young child, I wanted to read.  My mother read lots of things.  My older sister started school and soon she was reading too.  I felt left out. I saw the joy they got from books.  I did have one book of my very own.  I could "read" it too.  You see, I had memorized every word.  "Little boy blue, come blow your horn...."  It was a book of nursery rhymes with wonderful illustrations. 
Fast forward a few years. (okay, okay!  more than a few!) 
Two or three weeks ago, I got an email asking if I would like to review a book. Ha!  Yes please! 


I was sent a pre-release copy of  Sonoma Rose by Jennifer Chiaverini.  

The first night I started reading it, I had very little time to read.  I only read the first sixteen pages before I had to do something else. It was tough to put the book down; you see, I was already hooked.  This book is a great read. The characters quickly came to life and I was totally involved in the story of Rosa Diaz Barclay.  Rosa is in a terrible marriage. Rosa has borne eight children.   Two of her children are ill with a devastating illness that has already claimed the lives of four other children.  The other two children are robust and healthy. 
This story takes place in California during the days of Prohibition.  As California is known for the wine country in Sonoma valley, prohibition meant the loss of livelihood for many families.  Ms. Chiaverini manages to weave a story that will keep you spellbound as you learn about that history.   For me, the aspect of the children's illness was another interesting part of the story. 
Although Jennifer Chiaverini is known for stories that involve quilts, the quilts play only a small supporting role in this book. 
This book has characters that are well developed and complex. The story is rich and satisfying like a good meal.   You will close this book with a smile and a sigh.  


I highly recommend this book.  It was a delight. 

Design Floor - Eye-llusion update (Plus!)

Whew.... I have been working on the Eye-llusion quilt.  I have enough fabric for nine of my desired 12 squares. I will probably just use the nine squares and add some borders to make it bigger.
I have six of the squares laid out on the design floor.

They are not laid perfectly but  you can see that even with just six blocks, once it is joined, the optical illusion of the curves shows up. When it is sewn I am sure it will be "WOW!"  I love this simple-to-make but complex-to-the-eye design.  It is just fun.
The best part is that I designed it in Electric Quilt and I cut the pieces with the AccuQuilt Go! cutter.    I wish you could see it in person, the colors are much better. Maybe we will have a nice sunny day to get a good picture once it is completed.

And then I designed this in Electric Quilt 7

  

The coloring adds extra dimension to this design.  I see so many secondary patterns that I doubt I would ever get tired of this in a room.

Oooh..I am a guest artist today on Artfabrik by Laura Wasilowski

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EQ7 -Just playing

Electric Quilt 7 has some features I have not seen before.  Of course, I am the type that opens a program with no fear and goes through the menus saying "what does this do?"  And then of course I try it to see.
In the block drawing/editing section, I found something on the menu that says "Serendipity."
Well ladies and gents, that was something I had to try.
Here are two quilt layouts using block settings from this experiment.

I am not sure I could ever make these...but they are certainly fun to design an look at.
Now back to playing!
Tomorrow I have to go get my taxes done (ugh!) and do some errands.   I hope to get back to sewing on the "Eye-llusion" quilt.
Y'all have a great weekend - and I hope you are getting a long weekend for President's day.